How to stop eating chocolate?

[Neveryours]

Hi everyone, I need a little bit of help and I am wondering if anyone can offer some advice who has cut chocolate out of their life, or at least cut down on it dramatically.

I desperately want to be healthy, and I try to be. I am not overweight, so that’s not my issue, it’s just that I want to stop eating unhealthy food. I am not bothered about any other junk food other than chocolate. I am completely addicted, I feel like I NEED it, I can’t get through a day without it. I know that sounds extreme but it’s just the way it is and I don’t want it to be like that anymore.

I know it’s easy to say just ignore the cravings, but I struggle, they are just too strong. I get cravings for other things too but I can ignore these ones. I had a craving for Chinese takeaway last Friday but told myself nope, just don’t order it, simple as that. And I didn’t. However I just can’t do this with chocolate. If I have a chocolate craving, I can’t concentrate on anything else like I will try to take my mind off it but I just can’t stop thinking about it. It gets to the point where at 10pm I’ll literally get dressed and walk 20 mins to the shop just to get a chocolate bar. And I always hate myself for it afterwards. I start every day thinking right do not eat chocolate today!! It’s not as if I’m an alcoholic or a drug addict, this should be easy! But I cave every single day. I eat a share bar of chocolate daily. Why don’t I have the willpower to stop doing this? What can I do, what can I tell myself?

You know how some people LOVE a cup of tea and they can’t wait to get home from work, get their pjs on and settle down in front of the TV with a nice brew? Or maybe it’s a glass of wine for some people. That’s me with chocolate, I don’t drink alcohol at all, for me that comfort feeling comes from chocolate. I look forward to it, it makes me happy (in the moment).

i know that this is bad for my body and I get moments of panic when I think about how unhealthy I must be. Sorry for sounding so dramatic about this, I know it’s not that deep, it’s just bloody chocolate not heroin! But I’m sick of having a constant battle with myself in my mind over it.

can anyone who managed to kick a sugar addiction help? I know that the answer is probably just to stop eating it and eventually the cravings will go away. But how do I gain this will power?!!

A share bar isn't really that much these days with everything shrinking!

What size do people mean by a 'share bar'? ... looks like the Dairy Milk with that description is 180g which comes to 963 calories.
If that's the size you mean then if you think 'isn't really that much', then either you're a large very active sportsperson or kidding yourself. It'd be about half the calories I need for a day when I've done an exercise class and a decent walk.

If a typical woman is eating that much chocolate and not putting on weight then presumably they're not eating enough proper food for a healthy diet.

Maybe part of the solution is to think much more in terms of making sure you're eating enough of the right sorts of food?

I have. It was not intentional but I went on holiday a couple of years ago and couldn’t get hold of chocolate ( there was other sweet things it was a cruise) but I just lost the urge to eat it.
I do have some at Christmas , Easter and my birthday. But only on those days. Then I stop and don’t think about it .
it’s like a switch has flipped off 😯

I spent years trying , giving up for Lent, dark chocolate etc.
But this is a weird no effort.

I spent time choosing my Christmas chocolate Neidregger marzipan and cherry brandy marzipan. At Easter I’ll buy myself an egg , £5 size.
wish I could’ve done this years ago but never too late (I’m 57)

I think a share bar is slightly bigger than a regular size bar
Definitely not 180g

Go cold turkey. Pick three days when you will have zero sugar, then try to arrange life so it’s hard to get any (throw it all out)

This is to break the craving cycle

After 3 days the cravings will stop

The 3 days are hard

But they’re easier than heart disease etc

I've switched to dark chocolate. It's actually good for you and I don't feel like I'd want a whole bar of it because it's too intense.

@neveryours I get that. I'm addicted to vaping so I know totally that feeling!

How about, instead of buying the small bars and ending up caving, keep buying the same size as you have been BUT don't eat the last square of it. Just one tiny square. Do you think you could do that? I bet you could.

Then you could give it a week, leaving just one square every day, and then move on to two squares. And so on.

It sounds silly, but our tiny habits build up. So instead of trying and failing repeatedly, ask yourself where you want to be in six months time. Is it that you want to be free of your chocolate habit? If so, all you've got to do tomorrow in order to become a person that isn't addicted in six months time is leave one tiny square in the packet.

This is a good tactic! Thank you x

When I buy a bar of chocolate I break it up into squares of one piece and wrap them individually in tin foil and keep them in a tin. I allow myself treat of one square per night with a cuppa. I have no intention of cutting chocolate out altogether, but it has certainly helped me limit my intake!

I do this too, so I don't feel deprived. A small bar can be about 120 calories so I think that's okay.
A little of what you fancy is good, so long as the rest of your diet is healthy.